Although the night didn’t turn out the way the Eagles wanted in a 23-28 Region loss, the players and coaches could hold their heads high as they left the field at Wicksburg on Friday. A couple of times the team could have rolled over and taken the loss as the home team gained momentum, but they fought all the way to the end. Like last week, ACA cut the lead to one score and had the ball late. The reality of the loss means Alabama Christian will miss the postseason for the first time in a decade ending the longest playoff streak in program history.
Friday night’s game was the first with a chill in the air as fall decided to show up and brought some unexpected misty showers with it. The teams had to deal with the light rain for much of the first half. Wicksburg got the ball first and moved on the ground to ACA’s 35-yard line with six consecutive running plays. The Panthers first pass attempt turned disastrous as the ball slipped out of the quarter back’s hand as he prepared to throw. Keenan McCarthy recovered the muffed pass attempt to halt the Panthers drive. The offense took advantage of the miscue and put points on the board in its first drive. The rattled home team helped with two offsides penalties to help the possession continue. Christian Snipes' 14-yard run to convert a third down was the highlight of the drive. The offense stalled at the Wicksburg 21-yard line, but David Johnson nailed a career best 38-yard field goal to give ACA a 3-0 lead with 6:09 left in the first. After the passing mishap, Wicksburg stuck to the ground on its next drive on 13 straight plays. The scoring march ended at the start of the second quarter as the Panthers took a 7-3 lead with 11:10 left in the half. The methodical drive kept the ball away from ACA for a tick under seven minutes.
The Eagles responded to the home team’s score with one of their own. After Micah Merritt converted a 3rd and 1 with a seven yard run, Christian Snipes connected with Beau Gainey on two big pass plays that covered 62 yards in all to set up a first and goal at the 2-yard line. Snipes powered it in from there and Alabama Christian regained the lead 9-7. It looked as if the defense would get the ball back quickly for the offense as Wicksburg faced a 4th and 4 from ACA’s 44-yard line. The Panthers went for it and drew up a play that snuck the tight end out down the middle (ironically his number was 44, that’s a lot of 4’s) which resulted in a touchdown. With 6:20 left in the half, Wicksburg led 14-9. A three and out by the ACA offense gave the ball back to Wicksburg with just over five minutes to go in the half. The Panthers used the opportunity and the clock to perfection as they scored with just 16 seconds left in the half for a 21-9 halftime lead.
ACA started the second half with a three and out on offense and after a very short punt, the Panthers started on the Eagle 35-yard line. It took the home team just one play to score to extend their lead to 28-9 with 10:05 left in the third. The offense answered with a 7-play, 72-yard drive to cut the score to 17-28. Christian Snipes had an eleven yard run to get the drive going and had two important completions. The first was to Gekar Kelly for 28 yards to the Wicksburg 25-yard line. Four plays later he found Ethan Dabney in the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown. For the second game in a row, Mason Henry found Teilan Tyson-Long on the two-point conversion. After a little confusion about where ACA would kickoff from, David Johnson had a Panther in his sights and he nailed him with a line drive that caromed so hard off him that Ethan Dabney recovered the ball at his own 36-yard line (four yards behind where the kickoff came from). The Eagles moved to the opponent’s 29-yard line, but got no closer and turned the ball over on downs.
Wicksburg’s next possession moved all the way to the ACA 7-yard line. However, the defense did not break and forced a field goal attempt early in the fourth quarter. Cam Sutton blocked the kick which allowed ACA to take over on its own 16-yard line. On 3rd and 9 from the 17-yard line, Christian Snipes found Teilan Tyson-Long on a go route for 50-yard pass play to the Panther’s 33-yard line. Reeling from the previous play, the Wicksburg defense never saw the next one coming as Mason Henry lined up at receiver. Snipes handed off to Ethan Dabney on a fake reverse who flipped the ball to Henry for the pass. While all the eyes were in the backfield, no one noticed Beau Gainey 30 yards behind the defense. Henry saw him and the duo hooked up for a 33-yard scoring pass to cut the lead to 23-28 after the two-point conversion failed. The Eagle faithful anticipate many more Henry to Gainey scores in the coming years. Alabama Christian did manage to get the ball back with 1:56 left in the game but was unable to take advantage and turned the ball over on downs. The home team kneeled twice and the game was over.
Christian Snipes finished the game 12 of 28 for 217 yards and a touchdown while Mason Henry completed his only attempt for 33 yards and a score. Beau Gainey finished with four catches for 101 yards and a touchdown. Teilan Tyson-Long also had four catches for 68 yards. Ethan Dabney added three receptions for 29 yards and a touchdown. On defense, Mekhi Gardner was the team’s top tackler with 11 followed closely by Micah Merritt with 10 and Levi Summers with nine. Aidan Whiten finished with seven tackles while Bryson Dabney and Cooper Milner both had six.